USA SALES APRIL - Mistubishi has an aging range which is still selling really REALLY well, good for them !

• Outlander Sport and Outlander combined for sales of 5,343
• Mirage gains 37.2 percent over previous April with 3,302 sales reported
• Overall sales for the month report an increase of 17.7 percent over April of 2015

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) today reported April 2016 sales of 9,674 up 17.7 percent from April of last year and is the best April sales since 2007. The Mitsubishi Outlander and Outlander Sport CUVs once again posted strong sales numbers with combined sales of 5,343 up 36 percent over April 2015. Outlander sales of 2,729 are up 118 percent over the previous April.

Mirage continued to post solid sales numbers again in April with total sales of 3,302 up 37.2 percent over the same period last year. Mirage was the volume sales leader for the month.

"Coming off the heels of a strong first quarter for the brand, the first month of the second quarter continued the momentum with April sales that we haven't seen since 2007," stated Don Swearingen, Chief Operating Officer, MMNA. "Our CUVs continue to be the sales workhorse for the lineup while the subcompact Mirage demonstrates the need for affordable, reliable, and economical, transportation."

	April		YTD
	2016	2015	2016	2015
i‐MiEV	6	16	14	31
Mirage	3302	2407	9534	8463
Lancer	1023	1865	6477	7904
Outlander Sport	2614	2674	10312	10561
Outlander	2729	1254	8549	5047
Total	9674	8216	34866	32006

More than 100 people attended the official opening of F1 legend Nigel Mansell’s new Mitsubishi showroom.

More than 100 people attended the official opening of Formula One legend Nigel Mansell’s new Mitsubishi showroom and workshop in Jersey.

The champagne reception saw guests, including customers and suppliers, enjoy a live jazz band at the unveiling of the extension to the showroom and the new workshop. There was also the chance to look around The Nigel Mansell Museum, displaying trophies and race-winning cars.

Mansell Mitsubishi opened in 2014 with Nigel as Chairman and his son Leo as Managing Director. The dealership has been a great success, having been named Mitsubishi’s New Dealer of the Year at the brand’s annual awards in March this year.

The extended showroom now enables the dealership to have up to 40 cars on display at any one time, while the state-of-the-art new workshop includes four bays with all the latest equipment.

Leo said: ‘This is a natural progression for us, representing the growth of the business and our commitment to offering customers an excellent service. Tonight is a thank-you to customers and suppliers for their support over the past 18 months. Mitsubishi is a great fit for us, going from strength to strength with a loyal customer base and excellent product offering. The manufacturer is nice to work with, too.’

Nigel added: ‘It’s excellent working with Mitsubishi. They are a company sharing our belief in relationships. It’s a brand that has a great dynamic with a range that crosses many sectors, and it’s leading the way with its hybrid technology and is clearly going from strength to strength.

‘Customer feedback from our opening night has been amazing. People have been wowed by what we’ve done to the facility and they didn’t expect it. They’ve been very impressed and pleased with the quality presentation of the build.

‘We’re riding the crest of the wave now and we have the right product, an excellent facility and great support from the manufacturer. With all this, we certainly won’t be resting on our laurels and we can build on what we’ve achieved and continue our customer focus where we believe in no pressure and a completely transparent service. With the vision that is coming from Mitsubishi, we’re very excited about the future.’

Lance Bradley, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Motors in the UK, joined Nigel and Leo for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Lance said: ‘What Mansell Mitsubishi has achieved is extraordinary, becoming Mitsubishi’s “New Dealer of the Year” for 2015 and selling more vehicles in their first 12 months than we have sold on the island in the previous two years. When you visit the dealership, the main thing that’s obvious is the pride everyone has – you can feel how proud the whole team are in what they do and strive to achieve.

‘The workshop is amazing - Nigel wanted it to be similar to a top-flight motor sport operation. So impressive is the facility and customer service that the team are now even seeing owners of non-Mitsubishi vehicles wishing to have their cars looked after by Mansell Mitsubishi.’

Mitsubishi Motors is seeing a strong and sustained period of growth. Statistics from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show Mitsubishi Motors in the UK has been the fastest-growing mainstream car manufacturer for the past three years. The company saw sales growth in passenger cars of 44 per cent in 2015 compared with the previous year, against an overall market up by six per cent.

JATO announces that the SUV segment became the biggest sector of all in the last year.

• SUV registrations led the way and outsold the traditional segments
• Small SUVs contributed to the growth, exceeding 1.2 million units
• Subcompacts and Compacts registrations underperformed
• MPVs, large and luxury sedans suffered the biggest losses in 2015

European new car registrations went up by 9.3% in 2015, driven by an SUV boom that contributed to a big part of the total growth. For the first time in the history of European car sales, SUVs led the way, outselling the traditional subcompact and compact segments, posting an increase of 24% at 3.2 million units. 

Their market share grew from 19.8% in 2014 to 22.5% in 2015, leaving the subcompacts in second position with 22.0% share, and the compacts segment third with 20.6%. These vehicles along with the mid-size sedans/SW and sports cars were the only segments to gain market share in 2015. 

THE SUV SEGMENT LED THE WAY

The SUV growth was in part possible thanks to the outstanding results of the small SUVs, which contributed almost 38% of total SUV segment registrations in 2015. Their volume increased by 38% over 2014, exceeding, for the first time, the one million unit mark at 1.2 million. 

Despite their strong growth, they were still behind the compact SUVs, which accounted for 40% of the total at 1.28 million units. Small SUVs growth rate was also outperformed by the 42% increase posted by the mid-size SUVs, which totalled 470,400 units. 

The large SUVs came last with 243,000 units, up by 27% on 2014’s results. SUV registrations grew in all of the 29 countries analysed, with the UK posting the highest volume increase from 501,200 units in 2014 to 630,400 in 2015. Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Croatia and Greece all posted more than 40% growth.

In terms of brands, Nissan led the way with more than 376,000 units and 11.8% market share, but its volume percentage growth underperformed the total segments. 

Once again Renault occupied second position but this time it managed to move faster than its closest competitors in 2014, partly because of the introduction of the new Kadjar that allowed it to post a total increase of 44%. 

As a result, it moved further ahead of Volkswagen whose registrations remained static (+1.4%). In terms of segment share, Fiat and its new 500X posted the highest gain, followed by Citroen and Jeep.

SUBCOMPACTS & COMPACTS

The B and C segments occupied the second and third position respectively, losing one position each. The subcompacts registrations totalled 3.12 million units, up by 5.8% over 2014’s volume. These cars were still the most popular in the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia. 

The Volkswagen brand led this segment with a 10.5% share, closely followed by Renault at 10.4%, and Ford which placed its Fiesta as the best-selling of the segment. The best performers were Skoda (+18%), Mini (+44%), Mazda (+46%) and Mitsubishi (+35%).

Within the compacts, even if the Volkswagen Golf kept its position as the best-selling car in Europe, the overall segment lost market share as its volume only grew by 5.8% compared to 2014. The limited growth was the effect of very low increases coming from Germany, France and the UK, the three largest markets. 

The segment is clearly dominated by the Volkswagen brand, which is quite ahead of Ford and Skoda. Peugeot and Mercedes were the only other brands to post double-digit growth, while Nissan increased its registrations by 153%.

Through December, registrations of MPVs slid 1.8% becoming the top loser of the year. The 3.6% and 4.7% rise in Germany and Spain wasn’t enough to offset the declining sales in the UK (-17%), Italy (-4.6%) and France (-1.7%), the second largest market. 

Most of the fall came from the small MPVs whose volume slipped 11.5% compared to 2014, while the compact MPVs benefited from the arrival of BMW and its new 2-Series Active and Gran Tourer. 

Following the MPVs, the mid-size sedans/SW posted significant growth (+12.8%), outselling the city-cars, with 9.05% market share. The introduction of the new Volkswagen Passat and the good results of the Mercedes C-Class boosted sales.  

“Similar to the shift towards SUVs in the US car market, Europeans are clearly favouring these vehicles. In 2015 this segment drove most of the growth as more consumers moved away from the traditional segments and MPVs, towards SUVs and crossovers. Both economic and social factors such as the lower fuel prices and the growing appeal of SUVs’ benefits had a big influence on this sales boom” said Felipe Munoz, Global Automotive Analyst at JATO Dynamics.

ITALY - The premium family car sector gets another addition with the All-New Infiniti Q30, a car to shake up the rest.

• Q30 the compact premium of fundamental importance in the growth plans of Infiniti
• The Infiniti model in the premium compact class, to win a new group of buyers
• Strongly characterized by the personal and exclusive language of design that sets it apart in the premium segment
• A holistic approach that is reflected in the dynamic behavior and driving pleasure
• Perfect balance between ride comfort and handling
• The design of the seats and the suspension gives the impression of control, while minimizing fatigue
• 'Q30 and Q30' Sport 'with their respective peculiarities of travel: different characters to interpret contemporary tastes
• Aboard tranquility unrivaled

The Infiniti Q30 is the new compact car in the premium segment for the modern automotive customer. The Q30, Infiniti door for the first time to go global in the growth segment of premium compact models. The Q30 will play an important role in helping the company to achieve its growth plans globally.

Designed for a new generation of buyers who do not want to be "identified" for the choice of his car, the Q30 is hardly conventional with its strong character and forms strongly characterized.

Faithful to the message sent by the prototype presented in 2013, mixing the style of a coupe with a session high, without compromising on comfort. It is a car that defies the rules within the premium segment, and exceeds the conventions in the compact class.

Q30 emphasizes attention to the development of a product developed around the driver. The development team of Q30 has adopted a holistic approach to its design, presenting a car that offers protection for you, exceptional handling and a high level of comfort and finish. 

Nothing in Q30 is designed in isolation, therefore the 'driving experience is full and rewarding. It feels comfortable and "ready to go anywhere" because of its size, its dynamic confident, exceptional handling and a range of intuitive technologies. Compared to conventional premium compact models it gives a greater sense of safety due to high seating position.

In addition to the entry-level version of Q30, there are three other versions that embody the spirit Infiniti: "Premium", "Premium Tech" or "Sport".

Q30 and Q30 Sport, two interpretations that reflect in their name its own personality both from the point of view of the details of style both for its size.

In particular, the model Q30 Sport (1475 mm) is less than 15 millimeters compared to Q30. Even driving performance are differentiated due to different settings of the suspension as well the characteristics of ride and handling - to give buyers a choice that is specific to their needs and preferences.

"Q30 is still sculpted, highly distinctive as it was the prototype, deliberately unconventional and with an asymmetrical design of the interior. The car has been designed in accordance with the highest standards to provide a driving experience unmistakably Infiniti. Q30 will allow Infiniti to reach his first goal of being one of the biggest producers of premium cars in the world. "

USA - Mitsubishi adds special edition to the Mirage range giving it a premium audio system to go with its high MPG.

• The new Edition features custom-engineered 300-watt premium audio system
• Starting MSRP of $14,945

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) today announced a new trim to the fuel-efficient 2015 Mirage, the Rockford Fosgate® Edition. Already the most fuel-efficient, non-hybrid, gasoline powered vehicle available in America today with a combined fuel economy of 40 mpg, the Rockford Fosgate Edition adds a custom-engineered premium audio system and other features to offer consumers a high-end model in a sub-compact car. The new Edition features a starting MSRP of $14,945.

The Rockford Fosgate Edition starts with the Mirage DE and adds a 300-Watt, Rockford Fosgate ecoPUNCH™ sound system, steering audio control, Bluetooth® hands free phone system and audio, cruise control, leather wrapped steering wheel, alloy wheels and special badging. Custom-engineered to match the interior and acoustics of the Mirage, the audio system's advanced features include:

• Newly developed, dual 6.5-inch long-throw ecoPUNCH subwoofer system in Mirage-specific molded acoustic suspension type enclosure to allow the driver and passengers to "feel" the music
• Highly efficient, 300 Watt Class-D ecoPUNCH amplifier with full Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and featuring a proprietary discrete MOSFET subwoofer amplifier channel to deliver effortless power with low distortion

Standard features include automatic climate control, high-gloss piano black center console trim, rear spoiler, keyless entry with panic alarm, tilt steering, power windows with driver's side auto-up/down, variable intermittent wipers, convenient split folding rear seat, rear seat heater ducts, body-colored power side mirrors, door handles and tailgate handle, plus many other welcome features.

"Rockford Fosgate is one of the most recognized and coveted audio systems in the automotive industry and we're excited to offer this package in a segment that doesn't typically offer premium audio systems," said MMNA executive vice president, Don Swearingen. "With its remarkable affordability, fuel efficiency and an industry-leading warranty, this new audio package for the 2015 Mirage warrants strong consideration amongst car buyers."

For more information on the 2015 Rockford Fosgate Edition Mirage please visit media.mitsubishicars.comand be sure to visit us on 

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